Barbed wire



(No Model.)

J. D. CURTIS.

BARBED WIRE.

No. 484,890. Patented Oct. 25, 1892.

UNITED STATES PAT NT JOHN D. CURTIS, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

BARBED WIRE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 484,890, dated October 25, 1892.

Application filed January 15 1 892.

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN D. CURTIS, a citizen of the United States, residing at VVorcester, in the county of Worcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Barbed Tire; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof, which, in connection with the drawings, making a part of this specification, will enable others skilled in the art to which my invention belongs to make and use the same.

My invention relates to barbed wire; and the object of my invention is to improve upon the construction of two-strand four-pointed barbed wire as now ordinarily made and to make a two-strand barbed wire provided with four-pointed barbs, said barbs made out of a single piece of wire of non-circular cross-section, and preferably half-round wire, wrapped once around one of the fence-strands, and with four projecting ends or points extending in opposite directions, said four points formed by cutting or slitting the ends of, the barb.

' My invention consists in theimproved fourpointed wire barb made in one piece and combined with a fence-strand, as will'be hereinafter fully described.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of a section of my improved barbed wire. Fig. 2 is a cross-section on line 2 2, Fig. 1, looking in the direction of arrow at, same figure. Fig. 3 is a side or edge View of the barb before it is wrapped around the fence-strand. Fig. 4 is a cross-section on line 4 4, Fig. 3, looking in the direction of arrow 1), same figure; and Fig. 5 is a cross-section on line 5 5, Fig. 4, looking in the direction of arrow 1), Fig. 3, showing the shape of the barb-points in cross-section to be a segment of a circle. Fig. 6 is a plan on enlarged scale of a piece of barb-wire non-circular in cross-section, showing the cuts which are made at intervals therein to form the two barbs or prongs at each end of the blank.

In the accompanying drawings, 5 and 6 are the wire strands of the fencing, which are twisted together to form the fence-strand.

7 is the barb, wrapped or coiled once around one of the fence-strands 5. The barb 7 is made from a single piece of wire of non-cir- Serial No. 418,162. (No model.)

four ends or points 7 is then wrapped or coiled at its central portion once around one of the fence-strands.

Before the piece of wire forming the barb is wrapped or coiled around one of the fencestrands two of the points 7 are preferably bent so as to extend above and below the horizontal plane of the main body of the barb and at substantially-right angles thereto, as shown in Fig. 3, and with the points of the barb preferably in this position the barb is wrapped or coiled at its central portion around one of the fence-strands, leaving the four points 7 of the barb extending in opposite directions and in planes substantially at right angles to each other, as shown in Fig. 2, to form the completed four-pointed wire barb.

It will be observed by referring to Fig. 3 that in my four-pointed wire barb the barbs or points 7 are at the two extreme ends of the piece of wire from which the barb is made and that the central portion of the barb between the slit ends forming the barbs or points 7 is solid and intact and of the full width of the wire, as is the case in the ordinary twopointed wire-barb.

In making my four-pointed wire barb the body of the barb or that portion of the wire blank between the slit ends or points 7' is made long enough so that when the wire barb is applied to its fence-strand the body or central portion of the barb between the barbpoints 7 will wrap entirely around and encircle the fence-strand, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and the slit ends of the wire will lie contiguous to each other and pass slightly by each other (see Fig. 1) before the points 7 of the barb begin to diverge and extend out from the fence-strand.

In Fig. 6 is shown in plan a piece of barbwire with the cuts therein needed to form successive blanks, each having a solid central portion for spirally wrapping around the strand-Wire and two pronged ends. In this way the blanks are formed without any waste whatever.

The advantages of my improved barbed wire will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art.

The great object sought after at the present time in the manufacture of barbed wire is to make barbed wire having very light and strong barbs made out of wire and firmly secured to one of the strands of the fencing by wrapping or coiling the barb thereon.

Heretofore in the manufacture of barbed wire provided with four-pointed barbs the barbs havebeen madeout of sheet metal or from two separate pieces of round wire. In the case ofasheet metal barb, the barb, to be sufficiently strong to have the points efiectively resist pressure, must be made heavy and bulky, and said sheet metal barb cannot be attached to one of the strands of the fencing by wrapping or coiling it thereon, but must be attached to the fencing by inserting the barb between the two strands, and bending the points thereof or otherwise-as, for instance, by providing the blanks with tongues to clasp the strand.

In case of barbed wire having four-pointed barbs made out of wire, as heretofore made, the barbs have been made out of two separate pieces of round wire, each of which has been wrapped or coiled once or more around one or both of the fence-strands in such a manner as to leave the four points of the two pieces of wire projecting in opposite directions. The four-pointed wire barbs thus made are heavy and cumbersome and add materially to the weight of the fencing.

In my improved barbed wire, as above described, I provide a fourpointed wire barb made from a single piece of wire of a noncircular cross-section, preferably half-round wire. Said barb is wrapped or coiled only once around one of the strands of fencing. I thus produce a very light four-pointed wire barb, which is firmly secured to one of the fence-strandsby wrapping or coilingit thereon, and said barb has four short sharp-pointed. ends or points thereon extending in four opposite directions, eachof said points being a segment of a circle in cross-section, as shown in Fig. 5.

By making my barb from wire of noncircular crosssection, preferably from halfround wire, I save about one-half of the stock used in making the ordinary barb made from round wire, and in my improved four-pointed wire barb I use only one piece of wire instead of two pieces of wire, which have heretofore been used in making four-pointed wire barbs, thus saving one-half or more of the amount of wire heretofore used in four-ptinted wire barbs.

I have shown in the drawings and described my improved four-pointed wire barb combined with two strands of fencing; but, if desired, the second free strand 6 may be dispensed with and a single strand of fencing with my improved four-pointed barb coiled thereon used.

Having thus described my invention,what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- The combination, with a strand of wire, of a four-point wire barb, made of wire noncircular in cross-sectiou, having divided ends which form the barb and a solid center portion which is spirally wrapped around the wire strand, substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore set forth.

JOHN D. CURTIS.

Witnesses:

JOHN C. DEWEY, KATIE FARRELL. 

